Old School Gamer Magazine Exclusive: Inside ‘Creepin’ It Real’

Old School Gamer chats with Nick Mann, Mega Cat Studios, who discusses the developer’s upcoming game, Creepin’ It Real. Discussing his love for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Mann lets us know why it’s a special game, perfect for the Halloween season.

Old School Gamer Magazine: How was this game born?

Nick Mann: We love Halloween and chiptunes, and the artists featured on the album (Mich Foster, Danimal Cannon) put some killer effort into the tracks. When we talked about getting the Dancing Pumpkin Man involved, we had to pull the trigger. Adding the Pachinko game just kicks it up a notch. Who doesn’t want to try some digital trick or treating while listening to spooky chiptune jams?

OSGM: Why the NES?

Mann: We all grew up on a steady NES diet, and love it like a child.

OSGM: How does it challenge normal gameplay on the system?

Mann: Creepin It Reel is a chiptune album first and foremost, with gameplay being more a feature in between practicing your pumpkin dance moves and flipping through the tracks.

OSGM: What makes it special?

Mann: It’s the first ever Dancing Pumpkin Man, rotoscoped dance move compilation on the NES. Digital trick or treating is just a killer bonus!

OSGM: Any thoughts on releasing on the Switch? Especially considering the success of a game like Kamiko?

Mann: We’ve submitted some proposals to Nintendo for games in the coming 6 months, fingers crossed!

OSGM: As an indie studio, what do you think you guys do differently than the big studios?

Mann: At the core of anything indie, it’s all about working on projects that we can get excited about, and immerse ourselves in. All of our projects are like that, and I think it shows in the finishing touches.

OSGM: What are your goals for this game?

Mann: It’s only being sold for a limited run of 150 copies. Our group goal for this game is to improve the dance skills of NES collectors worldwide, while providing the spooky ambiance any collector wants to feel virile.

OSGM: What makes this a perfect game to play on Halloween or for those looking for a scare?

Mann: Creepy Brawlers is currently our biggest released Nintendo project yet. Anyone who has spent some time working with the development tools can appreciate the blood, sweat and tears that went into making a game where every character is a background object to fit into the NES’ hardware limitations.

Mann: If you love your NES, you’ll feed it some treats this October, like any good console owner should. Happy Halloween!

____

Patrick Hickey Jr. is the author of the upcoming book, “The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult and Classic Video Game Developers,” from McFarland And Company. Featuring interviews with the creators of 36 popular video games–including Deus Ex, NHLPA 93, Night Trap, Mortal Kombat, Wasteland and NBA Jam–the book gives a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of some of the most influential and iconic (and sometimes forgotten) games of all time. Recounting endless hours of painstaking development, the challenges of working with mega publishers and the uncertainties of public reception, the interviewees reveal the creative processes that produced some of gaming’s classic titles.

Patrick Hickey, Jr., is the founder and editor-in-chief of ReviewFix.com and a lecturer of English and journalism at Kingsborough Community College, in Brooklyn, New York. Over the past decade, his video game coverage has been featured in national ad campaigns by top publishers the likes of Nintendo, Deep Silver, Disney and EA Sports. His upcoming book, "The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult and Classic Game Developers," from McFarland and Company, has already earned praise from Forbes, Huffington Post, The New York Daily News and MSG Networks. He is also a former editor at NBC and National Video Games Writer at the late-Examiner.com